These data sets are treasure troves and -- when unlocked by the correct algorithm -- can release powerful findings.

They can help recommend your next movie on Netflix, tailor ads to your preferences, and provide you coupons for your favorite products. They can predict outbreaks of disease, determine veterans at greater risk suicide, and alert doctors to oncoming infections in premature infants. They can also recognize your image on Facebook, track your location, and predict your likelihood of committing a crime...

This hour, we ask: Is it possible to harness the incredible power of big data while maintaining personal privacy?

GUESTS:

Jim Stodder - Professor of management at Rensselaer Institute of Technology in Hartford

Viktor Mayer-Schönberger - Professor at the Oxford Internet Institute and co-author of the book Big Data: A Revolution That Will Transform How We Live, Work, and Think

Oren Etzioni - CEO of the Allen Institute for Artificial Intellegence and a pioneer of big data

Sara M. Watson - Technology critic; Fellow at the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University

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(This post was last updated at 11:09 p.m. ET.)

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Chung-ahm is a Buddhist monk who's quarantined in the Jangduk village in southern South Korea.

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Update at 9:30 p.m. ET: Obama's Signature

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